Maharashtra Legislative Assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar pronounced the Eknath Shinde-led faction of Shiv Sena as the real Sena by taking into consideration the guidelines from Supreme Court. This is considered as a huge setback to the Uddhav Thackeray faction.
Speaker Narwekar did not disqualify any MLA from either camps and despite Apex Court objecting to appointment of the then whip of Shinde-faction Bharat Gogawale, Speaker Narwekar said that the Sunil Prabhu of Sena (UBT) ceased to be the whip from June 21, 2022, while Gogawale has become the authorised whip.
In short, care has been taken to maintain the current political situation and Assembly speaker’s verdict was largely expected. It had become clear that the Shinde-led Maharashtra government was not really in danger due to certain things. One of the key factors was that speaker Narwekar had personally met Chief Minister Eknath Shinde two days before announcing his verdict. In fact, the meeting was probably pre-planned to give a hint to the people of the State. Naturally, Uddhav Thackeray criticised the meeting and questioned how the judicial process will be transparent if the judge himself visits one of the parties involved.
Thackeray’s point was valid as neither Narwekar nor Shinde disclosed anything from the meeting. Manoj Saunak’s appointment as Shinde’s chief advisor one day before the verdict was another signal that this result was expected. Saunak had retired on December 31 as the States’ Chief Secretary. It would not take an expert to tell that Saunak’s appointment was a clear indication that Shinde would continue as the chief minister.
Thirdly, speaker Narwekar did not commence with reading out his verdict till Shinde was done with his speech at Shiv Sankalp Yatra on the judgement day. However, the biggest factor is the observations noted by speaker Narwekar. While declaring the Shinde-faction as the real Sena, he stated that the party head is not bigger than the executive. He also added that the party chief’s individual opinion cannot be the viewpoint of the entire organisation. In short, he gave importance to the legislature party.
While Thackeray defined the judgment as contempt of the Supreme Court, Shinde said the verdict has ended a dynastic rule. Now these are political jabs, but if the defection which took place around 18 months ago becomes legal by law, it could lead to many similar incidents in the future.
If the verdict somehow remains unchanged, then it would mean that defections are protected by the law. Uddhav Thackeray himself stated that one cannot file a contempt petition in the Supreme Court again, against this judgment by the Assembly Speaker and has asked the court to intervene on its own. If the respective judgment remains unchallenged then the split caused within Nationalist Congress Party led by Ajit Pawar could become legal too. In fact, speaker Narwekar was expected to deliver his adjudication according to the provisions of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution (Anti-Defection Law) as instructed by the Supreme Court. Therefore, the question now arises whether it was required to determine who Shiv Sena belongs to, so as to deliver the judgment. The Thackeray-faction had already approached the Supreme Court against this decision delivered by the Election Commission. It is considered that the Supreme Court’s observation is also the reason why Narwekar preferred to decide who the original Shiv Sena should be. According to the Supreme Court guidelines, the whip appointed by the parent party is legal and not by the legislature party. Therefore, it is possible that Narwekar’s decision stems from the adjudication by the Election Commission. A question raised by Uddhav Thackeray regarding Shiv Sena’s amended Constitution of 2018 after the ruling is poignant. He questioned as to why the Speaker did not disqualify a single MLA if the party’s 2018 constitution is illegal? Although this is an important matter, it would take at least seven to eight months for the verdict if Sena (UBT) decides to make an appeal in the court.
By then, the Lok Sabha and Maharahstra’s assembly elections, both of which are slated for this year, will be done and dusted and so any rulings which come after that will hold no real substance. That is the very reason why Thackeray and other opposition parties have threatened to go to the ‘people’s court’. Needless to say, the people’s court here is the upcoming general elections. If the Thackeray faction and other opposition parties receive sympathy against this ruling, it would be beneficial for them in the polls.